1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the field of musical instruments which include a tubular segment and, more specifically, to flutes and segments thereof.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Making a high quality flute requires accommodating several sometimes-conflicting goals. A high quality flute must produce an excellent tone, be easily played, and be pleasing to the eye. A high quality flute also should not be excessively costly to make.
Although the quality of a flute depends largely on the skill of its maker, it also depends to a significant extent on the materials o which the flute is made.
Modern flutes have three generally tubular segments: a headjoint, a center joint, and a foot joint, each made of metal tubing. The flute may be disassembled into these three segments for convenient storage (in a case, for example) and transportation. The tone quality of the flute is strongly influenced by the quality of the headjoint.
The tone quality of a flute is improved by making the tubing of its segments from a dense and hard metal. Precious metals, in their commonly-used alloys (such as sterling silver or 14-carat gold) are dense and can be hardened. A high quality modern flute typically has tubing made of a uniform alloy of either silver, gold, or platinum, each of which is a precious metal. The tubing is formed by drawing a sheet of the uniform alloy into a cylindrical form.
Many professional musicians believe that flutes with silver alloy tubing produce a bright tone. They believe that flutes with gold alloy tubing produce tones that are warmer, sweeter, and richer than tones produced by flutes with silver alloy tubing. While some musicians prefer platinum flutes, others believe that platinum flutes produce a "cold" or "hard" tone.
A high quality flute should enable a player easily to produce a pleasing tone. When a flute player tries to use higher wind velocity to produce a louder tone, the tone quality produced by many headjoints deteriorates--a condition which professional flute players call "overblowing" the flute. A headjoint should resist "overblowing." Headjoints made of uniform platinum alloy tubing are particularly resistant to "overblowing."
Some owners of flutes with sterling silver tubing have those flutes electroplated with gold, either to achieve the appearance of a gold finish or to avoid the tendency of a sterling silver surface to tarnish. In addition, several flute manufacturers sell silver flutes which have been plated with gold. However, gold plating does not perceptibly improve the tone quality of the instrument and, since it cannot be work-hardened, may even detract from the tone quality. Also, a plated layer is relatively soft and is prone to wearing off.
The difficulty of achieving an acceptable balance among the foregoing considerations has frustrated both flute players and flute makers. Current flutes do not satisfy the demands of flute players for high-quality, relatively inexpensive instruments. As a result, many flute players have had to make an uneasy compromise between their need for high-quality instruments and their ability to pay for expensive gold or platinum flutes.